EU . countermeasures
Agriculture sector involved in US trade war
If US President Donald Trump is going to impose trade-restricting sanctions on the European steel industry, the European Union (EU) could do so for US agricultural products. This is reported by the Financieele Dagblad.
The European Commission (EC) mentions countermeasures that mainly target agricultural products. Those measures would affect the American states where Trump has a lot of support. Het Financieele Dagblad reports that these measures are necessary, because otherwise the European steel industry would be disadvantaged. This is because traditional trade flows will be disrupted.
American critics point out that the food industry should be concerned about the sanctions. They believe that the United States (US) is worse off with sanctions on agricultural products than with a protected steel market.
New trade war?
The protectionist measures are a cause of great concern to Eurofer (European trade association for steel companies). "Don't pull the trigger that leads to a new trade war," the brache organization calls out. Whether this trade war really breaks out depends on President Trump. He must decide before April 11 whether to proceed with the trade sanctions.
Should Trump want to introduce sanctions for steel, Washington can count on lawsuits at the World Trade Organization in addition to European countermeasures.
Anne-Jan Doorn
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